It’s Baaaack, and it happens every year right about now – the meme from the 1995 pop boy band NSYNC, in which lead vocalist Justin Timberlake insists that he said “It’s gonna be me,” not “It’s gonna be May” – this despite it sounding very much like the latter.

Unfortunately for 27-year-old Dodgers right-hander Dustin May (not Me), the Justin, TX native and Dodgers third-round draft pick in 2016 out of Northwest High School in Justin becomes the brunt of the now 30-year (bad) joke, especially when he tanks, as he did in Sunday’s 4-3 Dodgers loss to the NL East fourth-place Atlanta Braves in front of 39,649 at Truist Park in downtown Atlanta.

May made a total of 97 pitches of which 63 were for strikes (64.948%). His fastball averaged right around 95 mph and his sweeper around 85 mph, two of which Riley sent out of the yard.

“It’s pretty frustrating, giving up two homers to him on the same pitch,” May told reporters postgame. “That’s not really how I drew it up. I thought the execution was a little better tonight except for those [sweepers]. The guys tried to battle back,” he added.

That they did, including a one-out 365-foot pinch hit home run to left by Miguel Rojas with one out in the top of the seventh to pull to within one of the Tribe.

With the loss, May, who is fresh off the IL from flexor tendon surgery and a life-threatening esophageal tear, is now 1-2 on the season with a less-than-ideal 4.36 ERA.

Oh well, on to the next one, with the Dodgers lead in the NL West down to a half game ahead of the second-place San Diego Padres.

Play Ball!

  *  *  *  *  *  *